Photoshop can be a useful tool for anyone to alter reality in their favor.
But, as British Prime Minister David Cameron found out, when the editing is so bad that it is obvious, the results can be hugely embarrassing.
Especially when the editing involves sticking on a badge meant to commemorate soldiers who have died in war.
Yes, someone from the Prime Minister’s office crudely added an oversized Remembrance Day Poppy to Cameron’s Facebook profile picture.
“This was an oversight and the picture was quickly taken down,” a spokeswoman at 10 Downing Street told CNN.
The mistake was first spotted by Twitter user Dylan Morris.
Twitter reaction
After the discovery, Cameron was mercilessly mocked on social media.
Twitter users added entire poppy wreaths to Cameron’s picture, as well editing the 49-year-old leader into a famous image from the film “American Beauty,” where Mena Suvari lies naked, covered only by red flowers.
Both profile pics of the Prime Minister have been removed from his Facebook fan page.
Other world leader Photoshop fails
However, it’s not just the British leader who has been caught out by poor editing skills.
Remember the time the head of the Russian Orthodox church was relentlessly mocked after a $30,000 watch disappeared from his wrist on a photo from the Church’s official website, leaving the watch’s reflection on the table?
Now you see the watch, which appears to be a Breguet timepiece…
Now you don’t…
Or, more recently, when U.S. presidential candidate Jeb Bush was mocked when his campaign team, Right to Rise USA, posted a photo of him with a different person’s hand.
Rival candidate Donald Trump took the opportunity to mock Bush on Twitter.
An earlier version of this story misstated the name of the actress shown in the “American Beauty” image above.
